1. Field of the Invention
Commercial riding mowers, while built to withstand far more stringent conditions and for longer periods than the familiar lawn tractor that many have around the house, they are still mechanical devices and subject to all of the vagaries of such devices.
Such mowers require regular service and preventive maintenance and, in addition, are, by virtue of the adverse environment in, which they operate, the subject to breakdowns, all of which take time, and time is money. It is not uncommon to see such devices in various stages of disrepair along the roadway, or up on jacks or a trailer where the mechanic, or, in some cases, the driver, can access the motor, mower blades, fuel system, drive system or a combination of one or more of these systems.
Whoever may be working on the mower, is either on his back working above his head, or in some contorted posture in, on, under or below the machine, in an effort to reach a particular system thereof. The result is unproductive time at one end of the scale to a workman's compensation claim at the more drastic end of the scale.
State and federal OSHA rules and regulations intended to protect the driver often dictate design parameters, resulting in any and all moving parts such as belts, pulleys, blades, fuel cells and the like being completely hidden from inadvertent access, and those same regulations tend to hinder access to such parts for maintenance and repair.
2. Overview of the Prior Art
Typical of the type of commercial mower to which the present invention has particular utility is found in Davis, Jr. U.S. Pat. No. 4,395,865. Davis discloses a commercial riding mower in which wing mowers, as well as the main mower, are belt driven and an improved clutching mechanism is provided.
Bushboom U.S. Pat. No. 5,865,020 is another device, similar in purpose to that of Davis, Jr., and provides a multiple pulley drive system. It should be noted that in this patent many of the moving parts are exposed and could cause injury if inadvertently contacted by the driver, or another in close proximity.
Bushboom obtained additional protection for his liquid cooled mower engine in which a self cleaning grille work was featured, as seen in his U.S. Pat. No. 6,105,349. It should be noted that the fuel tank is accessible at the driver's elbow.
It does not appear that existing commercial riding mowers address both safety and convenience for maintenance and repair. Enter the mower of the present invention.